Celebrity Attractions founder, theater advocate Payton dies

Payton invested in Broadway and touring attractions

Larry Payton, president and founder of Celebrity Attractions, died unexpectedly at approximately 9:50 p.m. Monday at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla.

He was 64.

His son Drew announced the death via Facebook.

He said Payton was hospitalized for an unknown illness and had been placed in a medically induced coma before he died.

Through Celebrity Attractions, Payton produced major theatrical, musical and family productions — and handled marketing and group sales for Broadway touring shows — for 17 years at City Bank Auditorium in Lubbock.

His first Lubbock offering was “Cats” in the 1996-97 season, but his company also brought such large shows as “Les Miserables,” Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast,” “1776” and “Miss Saigon” to the auditorium.

“Larry’s passion for theater was infectious, and Lubbock was fortunate that he wanted to share that love of theater and entertainment with us,” said Vicki Key, retired Civic Centers director and now project coordinator for Civic Lubbock, Inc.

“He will be greatly missed.”

“Larry was a passionate theater advocate,” added Debra Justice, assistant director of the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center and City Bank Auditorium and Coliseum.

“His commitment to the art was absolute. I enjoyed our conversations on the past, present and future of American theater.”

Payton also brought such stars as Carol Channing in “Hello, Dolly”; Cathy Rigby in “Peter Pan”; Barbara Eden and Georgia Engel in “The Odd Couple”; and Frankie Avalon in “Grease.”

Payton also became an investing co-producer of Broadway shows, including “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” which won a Tony Award for Best Musical; the Cathy Rigby productions of “Peter Pan”; “The Color Purple”; “Legally Blonde”; and more.

Eight of his co-productions were seen on Broadway, in London and on tour, including “Jekyll and Hyde,” “9 to 5,” “Grease” and Monty Python’s “Spamalot.”

(“Spamalot” opens Friday at the City Bank Auditorium.)

The Broadway League honored Payton in 2006 with the Outstanding Achievement in Presenter Management award.

Payton was an active member and deacon at Parkview Baptist Church in Tulsa. He served on the Board of Trustees for Lifeway, the country’s largest Christian retailer, and was active with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.